


The Date

by Shadhavar1126 (Chimera428)



Series: One Shots, Prompts and Previews [4]
Category: Supercat - Fandom, Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Awkwardness, F/F, First Date, Sequel, date, prompt, supercat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-06
Updated: 2016-08-26
Packaged: 2018-07-12 14:23:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7108939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chimera428/pseuds/Shadhavar1126
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt/Sequel request from <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/users/Spitfire303/pseuds/Spitfire303">Spitfire303 after my fic</a><a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/6578473"> Accidental Savior </a> under this <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/comments/60472102">thread</a></p><p>Sorry this has taken so long LOTS of changes at work including schedules and hours...more to come!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Blueprint

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Spitfire303](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spitfire303/gifts).



Kara took a deep breath, trying to settle her nerves.  She checked her watch one more time before pulling at her spencer edges one more time.  Ten minutes, she had ten minutes until Cat arrived.  Another glance at her watch and she looked to the side street one more time.  She knew Austin had already picked up the other woman and was en route but the anxiousness was starting to eat at her insides.

She had already verified their reservations and their table and was currently standing outside near the valet station waiting for Austin to arrive with her date.

Her date. 

The sheer thought of a date alone was not enough to make her giddy as much as it was the woman behind the acceptance of that date.   With a careful swallow she looked upward as a means to settle her nerves, odd given how grounding the action was.  Perhaps it reminded her of flying, of separating herself from the rest of the world where no one else could follow.   She drew in a deep breath, letting it out slowly while her stomach continued to tense and twist beneath the muscles there.

Her phone jolted her to attention with the vibration inside her pocket, letting her know that Austin was around the corner and all it served to do was kick start her heart against the cage of her ribs.  Kara let out another calming breath, reassuring herself that this was just like at work.  They were going to have dinner and conversation and instead of work as the main topic it might just happen to veer towards topics a little more personal.

Kara glanced behind herself, the sharp architectural lines of the restaurant sign glaring back at her.  Blueprint was still relatively new, already past its grand opening, but still attempting to make a name for itself in National City.  Everywhere else in town was relatively familiar with one Cat Grant and Kara figured it would be a nice change from the expected to something new that they could both experience together.

She would know of course, unless Cat had indeed been here already or was invited to the grand opening but didn’t inform her assistant of her attendance.  Then again in two years there was only one instance that Kara had not personally scheduled the other woman’s extracurricular activities and that had concerned some legal matter regarding Carter’s father.

Turning back to the curb she squared her shoulders and watched the sedan with her date inside pull up to a slow stop.  Containing her anxiety, as much as she could muster, she stepped forward, carefully pulling the door open and not off in order to allow the woman inside out.  She offered a hand almost on instinct, instantly feeling Cat’s hand slip into her waiting grasp easily and without hesitation.  Polished heels struck the pavement followed by slender legs and the swath of fabric hugging her thighs. 

Without falter Kara helped Cat out of the car, easing her onto the sidewalk before closing the door behind her with a gentle thud.   Cat turned sharply, breaking their physical connection while looking Kara up and down until the younger woman’s eyes widened slightly.  Another beat and her eyes made a round to better gauge her periphery before she raised an eyebrow in silent question.

Cat merely allowed a small smile to grace her lips as an equally silent response after a long pause between them, tucking away Kara’s slip of a murmured comment on her appearance for later. 

Unbeknownst to the pair, Cat’s arrival had sent the wait staff into a frenzy just beyond the doors.  What was once a calm and polished compliment of employees was suddenly reduced to a handful of them running to the back while others gathered near the front window in awe.

“You clean up nicely.” Cat offered, straightening her dress in an effort to hide her own nervousness at the situation.  It was one thing to date her assistant; which she had been contemplating recently but would never admit to.  It was another thing entirely to be on a date with her assistant who just happened to also be Supergirl.

She pushed all thoughts of either identity aside, something she decided when she left her private studio.  She knew some of Kara Danvers, as far as black and white could get a person, which in most cases wasn’t even worth the paper that information was printed on.  She knew even less of Supergirl, most of which she had found out on accident from the heroine’s naivety in dealing with Cat herself as a member of the press.

Kara was amazed she didn’t blush, though the heat of the compliment did reach the base of her neck.  She made a small gesture forward, gently setting her free hand at Cat’s lower back as if she did so every day.

“Thank you.” She finally answered, the outer doors opening up for them unbidden.  “You look amazing.”  She closed her eyes at her enthusiasm, shaking her head slightly while internally kicking herself at her somewhat adolescent response.

Again the pair failed to notice the hand motions from the door staff behind them.  Wild gesticulations and silently mouthed statements flung over them to the waiting hostesses who greeted them a moment after all too sweetly.

Cat felt the rise of her hackles for a split second, but the feeling was overrun with the warmth spreading across her lower back with Kara’s touch.  She swallowed carefully, feeling her lungs expand with her anxiousness, cursing herself internally for reacting like a teenager on their first date.

“Reservation for two, under Danvers.” Kara’s voice wavered only slightly, her hand remaining at Cat’s lower back as they stood at the hostess station.

“Yes. Oh yes, absolutely. Miss _Danvers_.”  The hostess exaggerated the name, causing Cat to front slightly and Kara’s fingers to flex against her back. “Right this way please.”

They were lead through the restaurant, past the rest of the standard compliment of people enjoying their meals.  Hushed whispers followed their wake, pointing out Cat and the woman she was with.

From what Kara could filter out, the general run of mouth was that the queen of National City had come down from her castle in order to review the restaurant.  Others of course were in awe or dumbstruck with her presence and somewhere she caught the yelling of someone in the kitchen for everyone to be prepared.  That this was their one chance to impress the one and only Cat Grant who was here to review them personally.

With a blink she was back in the moment with Cat, only just now realizing that they were being lead to a thankfully more secluded area.  With a sinking feeling almost immediately thereafter, she realized it was in an area seemingly reserved either just for them or higher end VIP fare.

The table they were offered was private with veils of sheer blue fabric on three sides of their area.  In its center on ice was a bottle of Bollinger champagne that Kara already knew was at least two weeks’ pay.  Her shoulders fell slightly when the full realization of what was already set into motion concerning their presence, or really just Cat’s, settled into her.

Cat herself hadn’t paid any attention to their surroundings, she was too absorbed in the feather weight of Kara’s touch at the gentle guide or flex of the other woman’s fingers as they moved about the restaurant.  Upon approach of the table however, she took note of the location as well as the silver bucket and bottle service and felt her throat grow tight.

Did Kara intend to wow her with riches and wine, was that the impression she gave even to someone when she had allowed to know her, get close to her, to watch her son, to maintain her private daily affairs? She tamped down the flood of sudden insecurities rushing up to meet her on the haze of her mother’s voice in her head and turned her focus on their hostess.

The woman in question set their menus down and told them someone named Ashley would be with them promptly.  Kara thanked her quietly before stepping closer to Cat, causing her to startle slightly.

“Sorry, I just-”

“It’s fine.” Cat interrupted looked over her shoulder at Kara.

“Can I take your coat?” Kara swallowed, her hands already hovering near Cat’s shoulders.  Cat gave her the slightest of nods before turning away from her once more.  With her permission, Kara broke the seal of Cat’s collar, gently ushering the other woman’s jacket from the breadth of her shoulders only to feel her breath catch as bare skin was revealed to her with the movement.  With a hard swallow she carefully turned Cat’s coat around, pulling the arms back taught and squaring it properly before hanging it on the nearby hook on a post at their table.

She could feel Cat watching her, catching her out of her periphery before looking at the woman directly to which Cat cleared her throat and looked away.  Kara shrugged out of her own smaller jacket, hanging it on the lower peg before stepping over and pulling Cat’s chair aside, gently ushering it forward to meet the other woman as she settled.

“Thank you Kara.” Her name practically rolled of Cat’s tongue, causing Kara to nearly stumble on her own chair as she moved to sit down.

“Always.” She replied, hiding her clumsiness by scooting into the table.  She let out an audible exhale through her nose, trying to calm herself as Cat flicked her gaze back up.

“You’re holding out on me.” Cat said, perusing the menu laid out in front of her. Kara looked surprised for a moment until Cat continued.  “All this planning in such little time. I only just left you a couple hours ago.”

Kara let out a breath of a laugh, glancing at her menu then back up at the elephant on the table between them.

“Would you, do-” she sighed, already reaching for a flute to turn over despite herself.

Before Cat could even answer, a rather stately dressed woman snagged the bottle between them and began going through the process of opening the item.

“Miss Grant,” she spoke without looking up or regarding Kara. “Or should I say _Danvers_.” She implied with her tone that the name was merely a pseudonym. “My name is-”

“That’s actually me.” Kara said, catching the woman off guard, but she continued with an annoyed lilt.

“Again my name is Ashley and normally I manage the floor but tonight,” the cork popped off audibly and Cat’s glare was evident, at least to Kara. “I’ll be taking care of you.”

Kara straightened at her date’s expression, not quite sure the reason outside of some small recollection that popping champagne like that tended to bruise it or alter its flavor or something like that.  She watched the flutes fill with an overly healthy head before their caretaker set the bottle back in the bucket.

Cat drew a breath to speak only to be interrupted once more.

“We have a wonderful course set for you in order to sample each of our house specials and before the dessert course we’ve arranged a special tour of the kitchen for your viewing pleasure.”

Kara swallowed, feeling defeated, she had no idea how much this was going to run but at this rate she was going to have to excuse herself to call Alex and ask for a loan.  Already her mind was starting to reel. Who in the world did she think she was? This woman was used to a luxury Kara could only wish for.  She dated elite playboys and multimillionaire celebrities.  Not personal assistants, even if they also happened to be aliens from another planet.

Kara ran a hand through her hair, having lost track of their manager’s spiel and in turn reached for her champagne flute and downed the whole thing without thinking.

Both Cat and Ashley bore down on the younger woman, who looked between them before holding her cup up incredulously for a refill.  With the ensuing moment or two of hesitation from their current host, she grabbed the bottle and refilled her own chalice.

“Audrey is it, if you could just give us a moment.” Cat pushed, watching Kara carefully as she straightened back in her seat and set her glass between her fingers in front of herself.

Without correction the woman nodded, pointing that she would be right around the corner before disappearing.  It was then that Cat noticed the small gaggle of employees that skittered away from various locations in their manager’s wake.

Cat let out a rough exhale, not bothering with the champagne and instead continued to focus on Kara who was now turning her glass around and around.  “You went all out didn’t you.” Cat said while Kara drew in a deep breath of resignation.

“Of course.” Kara supplied, not looking up. “Just full of surprises aren’t I.” She downed the second glass with a small hiss and a cut of her eyes to the scurrying wait staff before setting her glass back down firmly enough to nearly crack it.

Cat tipped her head, watching the other woman carefully, feeling her chest ache at Kara’s concession to the way their evening was turning.  Of course she would own the run of events rushing up to greet them. She was someone to be impressed, who dated millionaires and diplomats and cinema legends.  She went on international dates in private jets over Paris and single-handedly ran a multimedia empire to rival most second world countries. Not someone who could just as easily spend a night curled up barefoot on the couch with a homemade meal, candles and a glass of cheap wine, entertained with simple conversation.  Not a widowed, twice divorced, single mother of two with no possible offers that she could grant the younger woman that would be worthwhile. She was nearly twice Kara’s age, with a young son, a prospect for grandchildren within at least five; anxiety driven, mother issue riddled, an all wrapped in a semi-functioning, anti-social workaholic if she had the right combination of alcohol and medication.

Kara leaned forward, moving her glass aside and pulling Cat’s attention back to the fore.  She drew in a deep breath to begin her confession only to again be interrupted by a flock of penguins disguised as Blueprint’s entire wait staff loaded down with trays, and platters and complimenting beverages.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, sorry this took so long. So much going on at work!

Kara watched with an ever growing sense of doom as plate after plate was set between her and Cat across their table top, placing more and more distraction and distance between them. A part of her cursed herself, her morals and her degree of chivalry as her mind ever so wonderfully supplied the images from earlier in the day within Cat's private studio when she'd had the woman wrapped around her waist. 

Kara chanced a glance at Cat who seemed stuck somewhere between awe and desertion. The woman was easy enough for her to read, oddly even more so out of the office than it it. She was overthinking, to the point of losing herself to her thoughts. Her gaze, while attentive to the objects being displayed before her, was glassy and in constant motion. Instantly denoting, at least to Kara, that Cat's level of anxiety was only rising with what she was being presented with. 

As well it should be at this point Kara mused sourly. Were she to have had the audacity to orchestrate something this elaborate Kara would have easily overshadowed the woman across from her, as well as any opportunity for conversation, even in the minimalist of senses. Or for that matter any actual element of what a real, honest to goodness, first date should be. Especially for a woman like Cat. Sure all first dates were filled with elements of anxiety, but the pleasant kind, the kind anticipating a second date or what minute little gestures or accidents might occur between the two people. 

Some first dates were disastrous, Kara had experienced that herself, many a time, and was sure Cat had as well. -Their- first date however was not something she had ever considered falling into that category. Admittedly she'd entertained the idea prior to now, of course there were embellishments here and there that would be difficult to replicate perfectly in a tangible setting such as this. With a slight furrow, she realized she had always seen their first date with Cat while Kara was in full Supergirl regalia. 

With another once around their table and the sea of unending samplers she felt her jaw shift and her own irritation growing exponentially. She shifted her thoughts, whirlwind as they were, and considered all the failed dates, even if she could count them on one hand, over her tenure with Cat. Catching bits and pieces from whatever had stuck with her boss thereafter, their present situation wasn't too far from the examples she had fully intended on steering clear of. 

She should be thinking of subtle ways to hold Cat's hand, like at the door of her car when she first arrived. How to make her breath catch with pleasant surprise or her heart beat faster in anticipation, like when she had taken her jacket, brushing over Cat's smooth skin before she had eased her down into her chair. There should be flirting and easy conversation not related to work, and with enough finesse and perhaps a little confidence, she should be so lucky to float away home with the fading memory of the taste of Cat's lips on the tip of her tongue. 

Instead she felt the entirety of the restaurant closing in on them both. The walls of separation Cat usually reserved for new employees or those not worth her time slowly rebuilding themselves back up brick by brick. The tightness around her eyes was back, and Kara could easily hear the skip in the other woman's heartbeat signaling that her anxiety had been pushed up yet another level as their food was arranged on the table to make room for each sample's complimentary beverage.

“Stop.” Kara spoke, and only Cat seemed to notice as green eyes jumped from the table to her mouth. The circus between them only continued and it wasn't until the shattering of Kara's champagne flute did the nearest wait staff halt their actions. “I said stop.” 

“Is there a problem Ms. Grant?” Ashley was back in a rush, even as others hurried to clear the remnants of Kara's glass, grabbing for the plates of food she had ruined with the breaking. 

“The prob-”

“Danvers.” Kara interrupted Cat, making the other woman sit back in her seat slightly, her expression shifting into neutral, even if Kara knew better. “It's Danvers. Not Grant.” 

The woman had the gall to look between them, ending with Cat before Kara pushed to a stand and weaved her way into the space between the manager and her date. Unseen behind her Cat herself raised a brow, the corner of her mouth tipping just enough to be considered impressed.

“The reservation was for Danvers, party of two. Had it actually been for Ms. Grant, with the intention of reviewing this place in Catco's magazine like you and half of your staff here have assumed.” 

The manager glanced to her staff, wondering who had spoken loud enough to tip the woman off. 

“Oh no, this isn't their fault. This is your fault. For putting their hopes and your intentions above everyone else.” Kara straightened slightly putting more space between Ashley and Cat in the process. “But had we actually been here to review your little restaurant here, you would never have been made aware of it, she would never set foot alone in this place, she would have sent me or any number of Catco staff here for the authenticity of how you serve the average person of National City, not its celebrity compliment.” 

Cat shifted in her chair, not exactly one to have her battles fought for her, but all things considered this really was a fight Kara was suited for. It gave her hope that this whole evening in all its grandiose trappings was anything but Kara's idea. 

To her credit Kara followed Ashley with another step forward, the remainder of her staff lingering nearby, somewhat crestfallen at the new development though equally enraptured. “All you've done here is give your employees a false hope of an extraordinary opportunity that any other restaurant would kill for. You've utterly decimated your waitstaff into serving one table, refused proper service to the other patrons here and I have no doubt taxed your entire kitchen staff into preparing specialty samples of every item on your menu that most of your staff couldn't even afford to enjoy themselves if they wanted to.” 

The other woman floundered, taking another step back nearly into one of her employees as Kara continued forward. “All of that can be remedied, quite easily and with a very small level of consideration. What cannot be salvaged however is this.” Kara gestured to the table, her other hand coming to settle somewhere near the flat of her chest for further emphasis. “A first date, a real honest to goodness, waited for longer than I ever should have before asking first date. Clearly you and your staff are quite aware of just who she is so you can imagine just how important I was trying to make this seem...” She fought for words, hands unsure of what to do with themselves as the realization of all that she was saying caught up to her. Her eyes widened and her hands fell, her shoulders following close behind along with her expression. With a heavy resignation Kara finally took a breath, trying to ground herself and wishing that she could just apologize to Cat and fly away. 

“Just, bring me the check for all this please and have your valet call for Ms. Grant's car I'm sure her driver made arrangements, and a glass of water please.” The last part of her statement fell quiet as she wrapped her arms around her torso and drew in a deep breath.   
What she hadn't counted on was the hand at her shoulder, urging her to turn around, or the brush of fingertips across either side of her jawline. Kara certainly had not expected to be standing in the middle of a restaurant kissing one Cat Grant in front of the entire wait staff. By the time her mind caught up to the whole of the situation, the other woman was already untangled from her and addressing the equally dumbstruck staff. 

“You'll bring me the check.” Cat emphasized, eyes rounding over the crew before level on Ashley. “And enjoy the feast you've laid out her, on me.” She held up a hand when the manager drew a breath. “Including your kitchen staff and clearing compliment.” She pressed, edging past Kara so that she might address them all. “My -date- isn't wrong, with a little consideration and less overreaching ambition, you could easily remedy what's happened here.” Cat shifted her weight to her other hip, eyeing each of them before turning her attention back to their manager. “Use this as a lesson, and maybe, just maybe, depending on how the next ten minutes go, I -might- send someone to actually give you that review you so desperately abandoned your basic principles for tonight.” 

Cat looked between all of those lingering about before making a slight motion for them to move along. “Now. Kara,” she punctuated the woman's name, glancing over at her for a brief instant before looking back to the manager. “if you're ready to go?”

The younger woman had already shrugged into her coat and had Cat's hovering near her shoulders, with the mention of her name she draped the article over Cat's bare shoulders and gingerly brought the neck closer together from behind, relishing in the surprise of Cat's hand wrapping around her own near her throat and giving her a small squeeze of reassurance before allowing Kara to slip free. 

“Miss Grant.” Ashley tried, halting in her forward momentum with the look cast her way from the pair of women. “Miss Danvers.” She added with equal reverence. “I apologize for my behavior and negligence and I hope you'll allow me to-”

“I won't.” Cat said, taking the small black booklet from one of the wait staff despite Ashley's disapproving look. “You're learning a lesson here.” With a quick glance at the receipt, ensuring Kara couldn't see unless she used her x-ray vision, she tucked a few folded bills into the booklet and handed it over to the manager. “One that I hope you keep in mind from now on.” 

“Your car's here Miss Grant, Miss Danvers.” The hostess supplied as she peeked around the corner, shying away a second after. 

With little effort Kara eased back to allow Cat to pass her, again in near reflex her hand came to rest near the other woman's lower back, barely there but solid in its presence as they worked their way through the restaurant, leaving a befuddled staff and patron compliment in their wake. 

Austin was waiting outside, door open and in reverse of their initial meeting Kara offered her hand in order to allow Cat to slip inside the car. She had every intention of making sure her date was settled before stepping back and making her own way home, until Cat tugged on her hand and pulled her off balance and into the car with her. 

Cat never scooted over, even when they rode together for work, and clearly Kara's level of surprise at the gesture showed as she adjusted her rather haphazard position on her hands and one knee across the seat and somewhat across Cat. 

Cat herself merely offered a smile and waited for the other woman to get her bearings until they pulled away from the curb. 

“What exactly did you have planned for this evening, Kara?”

There it was again, the tone emphasizing her name, a tone that made her swallow visibly as she bent her leg into the seat and wedged her back into the corner so that she might look at Cat properly. “I thought you were ready to-”

“Go home?” Cat interjected, receiving a nod from the woman across from her. TO which she responded in kind with a shake of her head in the negative. 

“Oh, well, I uhm, if.” She nodded to herself trying to reset her brain. “Okay. Just.” She put a finger up for Cat to wait and turned, leaning over the partition to murmur something to Austin. 

“Yes Ms. Kara, the long way?”

Kara looked up in the mirror at him confused before he gestured nonchalantly towards the sprawling view of National City as he turned the car the opposite direction from the way Kara was used to traveling to her given destination. 

“Yes. That wa-uhm the long way.” She mouthed a thank you to him before settling back as she had been before. 

“Like you said,” Cat spoke after a moment, taking note of the night line of her city as it broke over the horizon for her to view. “Full of surprises.” 

Kara allowed herself to smile, her heart thrumming in her chest, they would be overdressed for where she had designated they go, but at this rate their evening could only improve, or so she hoped. There again was that whisper of doubt in the back of her mind concerning the stations each woman seemed to uphold. She only hoped as they continued that Cat would find their new designation more pleasing than the one they just vacated.


	3. Chapter 3

Kara got more and more nervous as they got farther and farther from the city. Especially with Cat's occasional facination with her hand or the edge of her pant leg as they continued along.

“Had I known you'd be taking me to another city entirely.” Cat teased as Kara bit at her bottom lip thinking this was a horrible idea suddenly. When Cat reached over and touched the curve of her knee to reassure her that she was indeed just teasing she seemed to relax.

“I know it's out of the way, but maybe that just makes it a little more adventureous.” She tried as the car slowed and turned off the main road, gently dipping into the gravel and sand that rose up to meet them. With the sudden alteration of their formly smooth ride Cat could only raise a brow at Kara, her attention turning to their surroundings as they opened up to them.

Rows and rows of parked cars erupted from the thick of the brush that blocked the view from the main road, and up ahead she could see the minute beginigns of light pollution of some kind of establishment. As they approached the first of two buildings set back in a void of a landscape Cat slowly turned her attention back to Kara.

Kara swallowed visibly and drew in a deep breath, letting a smile chase away her apprehension before she sat forward, pulling her jacket off her shoulders and down her arms.

“What're you doing?” Cat asked, watching her carefully, as flashbacks of parking in her youth sprung to mind.

“Trust me?” Kara questioned, reaching down to roll the ends of her slacks up once over. Cat tipped her head at her similar to her namesake before nodding once over though her gaze remained cautious. She drew in a sharp breath through her nose as Kara's hand wrapped presumptuously around her calf, and while Kara didn't let go she did look up. “Trust me.”

Cat shifted absently in her seat, shifting an ounce closer to Kara before nodding again. With that little bout of permission she angled Cat's leg gently, causing the heel of her shoes to relax around the curve before she hooked a finger along its seam and reverently slipped it off.

It was Cat's turn to swallow visibly, trying to remain absolutely still for fear of giving away her sudden rise of arousal. She pressed her back into the car door, using the edge near the window to prop her elbow on so her fingers might cover her lips and their parting in order to at least appear as if she were breathing normally. Kara's hand shifted, easing her leg back against the cool leather of the seat before repeating the process with her other shoe.

Cat cleared her throat carefully and with little noise, fingertips dusting back and forth across her lips as Kara eased her other leg down. “Why, exactly am I not wearing shoes?”

“You're” Kara could have happily been swallowed up by the car cushions as her voice broke, hands still on fire from where she had held Cat's legs. “You're going to have to take your stockings off too.” She let out a breath through her nose, mentally chastising herself and her inability to not have any semblance of smooth to her person.

Cat made an obscene sound, at least to Kara it seemed like one, deep in the back of her throat like a purr of amusement before slowly sitting straight from the door. There was a part of her that wanted to tell Kara to take those off as well but she kept that to herself, no this was going to be far more fun to do it herself. “You're sure about that?” She warned more than questioned, watching Kara's neck slowly start to turn red.

“I, I don't think I could afford to replace them and pay my rent if they got ruined.” Kara said honestly as she felt her chest getting tighter and tighter with each breath she took.

Cat smiled faintly and seemed appeased by that answer as she turned her knees from Kara and scooted to the edge of the seat, fingers already walking down the length of her skirt.

“I'll just-

“Sit and wait.” Cat finished for her, know Kara was going to say something chivalrous to the tune of getting out of the car or facing the other way. Instead Cat pinned the line of her dress between her fingertips and pulled, letting the slit on the side of her thigh widen until the tops of her stockings were exposed.

She swore she heard the whine of metal somewhere to her left but refused to look up, keeping her focus on her own legs rather than the woman next to her who was clearly having an issue with her clothing being too tight. With practiced ease she unclasped the small nubs securing the thin fabric surrounding the thigh farthest from her date. It wasn't until she began to roll the fabric down how invest Kara was in her actions when her hand slipped off the door frame.

Keeping her smile to herself she retrieved one stocking, offering it out nonchalantly to her companion before getting to work on the other. Kara sat there as if she was holding the most precious thing in the world, and was terrified she was going to break it when her hand viced around it with the lift of Cat's knee so she could get its twin off.

“You have pockets.” Cat supplied, offering the woman the other stocking, a smug look curling around her lips as Kara struggled to take in a deep breath.

“What about your purse?”

“They'll snag.” Cat purred, turning back towards Kara and scooting a little closer. “This was your idea, you should be responsible for them.” Cat supplied, glancing down to the pair of items in Kara's grasp.

Kara drew in a deep breath then, noting Cat's point before she carefully smoothed the stockings out, pairing them together and making a small square of them on one of her legs. What she hadn't expected was for Cat to reach for her then, hooking a finger around the collar of her shirt which made her pause like an animal in a snare trap.

“I lose something you lose something.” Cat supplied, leaning close enough to fill Kara's senses with the very essence of the woman beyond the veil of her perfume. The corners of her mouth lifted in another smile. Her teeth pulled at the swell of her bottom lip as she flicked the buttons of Kara's shirt open one after the other revealing the plains of soft skin and outline of muscle to her.

“We're never going to make it out of the car.” Kara thought she had kept that to herself, until Cat's eyes were level with her own. She only glanced down once from her new vantage point to catch the black edge of Kara's bra but had initially been distracted by the visible beat of the other woman's heart hammering away.

“As young as you are by comparison, I could see how that might actually be appealing.” Cat shh'd Kara gently when her eyes went wide and she started to protest. “Not on the first date though.” Cat allowed before drifting away from Kara before knocking twice on her window. The split of the car door as it opened was as deafening as Kara's own heartbeat and after another blink she realized she was alone in the car.

She swore quietly in Kryptonian and made her way out, tucking Cat's stockings in her pocket carefully as powdery sand surrounded her feet. Kara took a second to look up at the sky, lifting her glasses just slightly and allowing her vision to adjust to the sudden burst of the surrounding galaxy in all its wonder. There was a part of her that wished everyone could see the depth of the stars that she could at a given moment. When she turned her head back down to look at Cat she noted the woman was just as struck with what she could see, even with her human tolerances.

Kara utilized the distraction, and a burst of super speed after Austin had returned to the interior of the car. Placing her right behind Cat who startled only slightly. “Not sure I can get used to that ability.” She spoke softly, her gaze taking in the stars which were barely visible in the heart of the city but bloomed like fireworks frozen in the void above her now.

“No one said you had to.” Kara said, taking her coat that she'd removed from earlier and setting it around Cat's shoulders.

Cat thumbed the edges of the jacket's lapels, hugging the garment closer to her with a deep breath before she turned to look at the other woman. “How long was it going to be?”

“How long was what going to be?” Kara asked, tugging the jacket even tighter around Cat and drawing her closer.

“Before you brought me out here?”

Kara feigned contemplation, her mouth turning up in an exaggerated manner of thought. “Mmm, maybe the seventh or eighth date.”

“Oh, presumptuous are we.” Cat held back the whole of her grin, though the edges of her mirth remained easily enough for Kara to make out.

“Hopeful is more the word.” Kara studied Cat closely, the way her eyes reflected the night sky, the soft curve of her lips and the way her heart beat that much faster when Cat realized she was being stared at like something unobtainably precious. She felt her breath catch in her chest, lips parting just slightly as she wavered closer. Only to closer her eyes and shake her head ever so slightly. “So much..” She cleared her throat, while her libido screamed at her to just kiss the beautiful creature in her grasp to end her suffering.

“So much?” Cat questioned breathlessly as she half-stepped a little closer.

“More, I, I want to show you.” Kara let her breath out in a rush through her nose, finally opening her eyes and wishing she had just kissed Cat.

“I see.” Cat nodded, eyes dropping to Kara's mouth for a moment before lifting back up. “I'm waiting.” She hummed, feeling Kara's fingers flex against the lines of the jacket wrapped over her shoulders.

Kara nodded asternally before stepping back and releasing the jacket and Cat from her hold before holding an arm out to her. Cat very nearly laughed at the gesture, rolling her eyes in a good natured fashion before linking her arm around Kara's much stronger one, letting her lead the way as they strode across the soft sand together.

“I wasn't sure if you would have come out here, on a first date, but it was the first place I wanted to bring you.” Kara admitted, as sand gave way to weathered wood, patina-ed overtime from a multitude of foot traffic no doubt.

“After two years, you really find me to be so difficult to agree to coming out to somewhere like this?”

“Two years of scheduling galas and fund raisers, not to mention your particular hotel choices when you travel. I know you have a beach house, and a winter cottage up in some breathtaking mountain range somewhere that was home to the winter Olympics Cat. By comparison this is a shanty in the middle of nowhere.”

“Maybe, but there are a few diamonds in the rough that I'm not opposed to checking out.” She squeezed Kara's arm. “You being one of them.” There was a slight misstep on Kara's behalf on that but she composed herself and continued leading Cat up along the docks until a quaint little waterfront restaurant presented itself.

Save from the point they were coming from the building was surrounded by water, high on stilts, at least three stories with the first level being right off the boat dock. The second seemed comprised of a combination bar and grill complete with small fire pits and stone and driftwood bars strategically placed throughout. The third floor looked out over both areas, jutting past the other levels no only to provide shade no doubt during the day time but also an unobscured view of the water and land stretching out beyond it.

The roof was thatched and typical of a tiki hut, but the expensive woods and exposed beams once they actually made it under the awning and Kara began to lead them up the stairs allowed Cat to take in the full aesthetic of the architecture which felt warm and thoroughly inviting. Kara lead them to a table near the edge of the uppermost floor which managed to drown out the majority of the noise from the bar level below it with surprising efficiency. Its surface was a high polish wood, clearly not native to National City, beset with a laurel exotic flowers and a small torch-like candle in the center that fed into the ambiance of the string lights hung from the rafters.

“I already want to give this place a better review than Printshop could ever hope to get.” Cat admitted as she slid into her seat with Kara's aid before the younger woman sat across from her with a full smile.

“If you did that I don't think it would stay the same. It's one of those hidden away places where you have to know someone or something to even attempt to find.”

“Which makes me wonder, how you stumbled upon this place before me.”

“Kara!” A full rich voice broke through their conversation as a heavier set man worked his way around a few other patrons and made his way to their table, scooping Kara up in a bear hug with as much strength as he could muster. “Oh my manners, I'm so sorry.” He said putting her down as he caught sight of Cat.

“It's alright.”

“No I'm interrupting, I just, I haven't seen this one since she left us. A couple years or so ago.” He grinned and stepped back as Kara adjusted her shirt and settled back down.

“Oh?” Cat questioned, glancing to Kara before looking back to the man.

“Best waitress we ever had.” He grinned, watching Kara fidget. “Practically saved this place from being nothing but a scorch mark.”

Kara threw a knowing look at Cat, who seemed all together proud and amused at the same time as she leaned back in her seat, disregarding the stare being sent her way. “Best waitress and a hero. Must've been difficult to see her go.”

He nodded a bit. “It was, but clearly ending up where you did paid off for her.” He looked back at Kara. “Didn't it kiddo.”

Kara drew in a breath, caught in an awkward smile as the pair regarded her, reducing her to a set of nods. “Yup.” She pushed, making a slight face at Cat as she chuckled to herself. “More than you know.”

“Well, since you're here, and I've been so rude with you and your date.”

“Cat,” the owner of the name supplied, offering her hand which he took gently despite his size. “Pleasure Cat. I'm Loto, since I've interrupted your both, tell me what you'd like to start with and I'll get it going before I make a bigger fool of myself or embarrass this one anymore.”

Cat grinned, looking over at Kara who seemed resigned to her fate for the moment. “I'm willing to be surprised. It seems to be a running theme.”

“Sangria for sure though.” Kara interjected, “and the smoked spread.”

Loto nodded with a grin, bowing ever so slightly. “Alright, I'll get one of the girls to load you both up and if you need anything before I get back, just let them know. Cat, Kara.” With a turn he made he way back into what Cat assumed was the kitchen area as she turned her attention on her date across from her with a rather satisfied expression.

Kara let it linger between them, at least initially before she turned her attention more pointedly on Cat and rose a brow. “What?”

Cat grinned, thanking their waitress as she brought them water and a pitcher of Sangria an just as quickly departed. “I always wondered what it was you did before I hired you.” She thanked Kara for filling her glass, taking a trusting sip of her drink with a sound of appreciation. “Why did you leave, really.”

Kara took her own hefty swallow of sangria, knowing it wasn't going to do anything to her but damn if she hadn't craved the unique flavors Loto had managed to come up with that made her wish she could just stop by and take gallons of the stuff home as Supergirl. “I exposed myself.”

Cat nearly choked and Kara couldn't help but laugh. “Not like that, wicked woman.” She chuckled as Cat composed herself behind a napkin while she fished out a cherry and popped it in her mouth. Already the two of them were more relaxed than they could have ever hoped to be at Blueprint and Kara relished in the feeling.

“He wasn't wrong, had I not been working that night, this place probably wouldn't be here.”

“I take it there was a fire?” Cat took another sip of her drink, easing her earlier gaff.

“Developer, wanted the space for his own to build condos or something. He ended up catching the lower floor with torches he busted.”

“That's horrid.”

Kara nodded. “Especially when he claimed it was Loto's fault, saying it was his recklessness with all the fire and faulty hand made sconces that were the cause.”

“How does that even work?”

“The guy had been coming around for a week or so, but what no one had noticed until they had security tapes was that he had been systematically going around and sabotaging each one. Finally with enough time and effort.” Kara made a sweeping gesture.

“That doesn't quite explain why you had to quit.”

Kara smirked, looking over at Cat through veiled lashes. “True. I ran through the fire and pulled people who were trapped in the kitchen out.” She supped, taking another smaller sip of her drink. “And when no one was paying attention, I blew most of it out.”

“But why quit? If you just pulled people out, and no one saw you put the bulk of the fire out I don't see the issue.”

“Loto was one of the people I pulled out.” She said into her glass before refilling it.

Cat studied the other woman, full realization coming over her. She could only imagine how slight Kara must have seen without having applied herself to any sort of physical regime like she clearly had been doing since she embraced her moniker. It reminded Cat of the first day she came in for an interview and how vastly different she was now.

“Does he?”

Kara shook her head. “Not that I know of anyway, everyone else seemed content with claiming it was my adrenaline, especially given my point of reference concerning my foster parents.”

Cat looked apologetic suddenly, unsure of what to say as Kara's expression shifted just enough to touch her eyes with sadness. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean.”

Kara blinked, the expression gone in an instant before she reached over the table for the other woman's hand. “No, it's not anything you could ever be sorry for.” She gave Cat a gentle smile, her thumb rubbing across the back of Cat's knuckles. “You don't know these things, I mean you do from a purely research type point of view from all that stuff you managed to gather up in that binder but not what makes it inherently me. Without any real explanation or context it's just statistical information.”

Cat drew in a deep breath, wondering where in the world this woman was half the time at work with her. Only to realize, Kara put up so much of a facade to conceal who she really was, it felt almost as if Cat was being allowed another surprise of a gift from her just by being here. It was a thought that struck her hard, and Kara caught it when it reached her eyes.

She shifted closer, taking Cat's other hand as if to reassure her, her expression riddled with sudden concern and highlighted with confusion as to what made Cat's demeanor shift so suddenly. As she took a breath to speak there was a noise to her left, pulling both their attention as Loto gave them both an apologetic smile before lowering the large tray he had in his hand.

“Sorry, again.” Kara let out a laugh and Cat smiled at him, the pair separating reluctantly at the end as he practically covered their table in all manner of food portioned just small enough for the both of them to share each course.

“I know I said surprise me..” Cat started as Kara watched him also set another pitcher of sangria down.

“True, but I also know how much this one can eat.” He grinned, before looking heavenward. “There I go again. Anyway, Cat, Kara enjoy, if you need anything just send someone back. I'll make sure we stay our of your hair so you can enjoy each other's company.”

“Thank you Loto.” Cat supplied with a warm smile, Kara quickly following suit before the pair were left alone again.

“What -is- all this? It smells fantastic.” Cat mused, scanning over each item on their table.

“Anything local Loto can get his hands on, even the fish, they're overflow from the preserve.”

“So that's why it's so vacant out here.”

Kara nodded. “Yeah, after the fire, and with a little help from my sister, this whole area was declared a nature preserve or something. There's a certain organism that only exists out here that with too much encroachment or something would make it extinct.”

“How does this place get to stay?”

“It was already here and so long as they included some kind of notification or something to patrons and boaters they're allowed to stay. That and something Loto has seems to make the stuff thrive.”

Cat grinned, feeling there was something Kara was leaving out considering how simple it all seemed but let it go for now as she turned her attention back to the feast lain out between them.

“Alright, so give me a tour, you know exactly what all this is. Tell me about it, in detail.” Cat flirted with her tone, watching the desired effect as red bloomed across Kara's throat as it rolled with another visible swallow. 

 


	4. Chapter 4

Kara thanked Loto again as he and the last waitress for the night took the small bag of food meant for Austin with promise of delivery.  He refused to accept payment so long as Kara promised to come around more to which Cat promised they both would much to the younger woman's pleasant surprise.  Despite the fact they were the last few patrons to leave Kara still wasn't finished yet.  

That was evident enough when she directed Cat not back towards their car but further into the nature sanctuary until even the little tiki hut seemed to disappear from the horizon, bathing them both in the moonlight and surrounding nature as they walked along and chatted idly, fingers tangled in each other.

Cat nudged Kara's hip after a moment when she took note of their slowing pace.  “If you wanted to get me alone in the dark Supergirl I could think of better places.”  

Kara nearly tripped, feeling Cat's grip on  her tighten in reflex as she let out a breath before rounding in front of Cat to face her.  “And you think my super speed is going to be difficult to get used to?”  Cat rose a brow at the other woman, waiting for her to finish.  “The way you, well, the way you flirt, -that- is a super power all it's own.”  

“Sweet talker.”  Cat mused letting their hands entwine together before tugging Kara closer. 

“How anyone has ever told you no is beyond me.” Kara whispered as Cat's eyes fell to her mouth again.  She let the end of her nose brush across Cat's cheek, lips brushing the skin thereafter as Cat let out a soft sigh and flexed her hands around Kara's. 

“Don't move..” Kara spoke directly against her ear, letting her exhale rush over Cat's skin enough to give her goosebumps as she reached up, breaking the link of their hands before pressing her glasses into Cat's palm. 

The corners of Cat's mouth lifted in amusement and disbelief at the other woman's constant unintentional way of winding her up only to slip away, before she nodded. “Okay.”  

“Watch the water.” Kara's voice was distant and when Cat opened her eyes again she saw the woman hovering above her.  A moment of panic rose in her given that she was in plain clothes and devoid of her suit.  It was an odd juxtaposition and sparked those very first images of Kara all in black and soaked to the bone standing on the wing of a plane.

Kara grinned at her as if sensing her concern and floated a little closer.  “No one is here but you and me.” She reassured watching Cat gravitate closer to her, waiting enough for her words to sink in before Kara rose higher into the air before zipping off in a rush of air that blew Cat's hair back. 

Cat tugged the edges of Kara's jacket closer around her, looking down to the glasses in her hand with a small smile as a trill of displaced excitement that she rarely allowed herself to indulge in wound its way through her body.  She crossed her arms over herself then, pushing the sensation, or trying, aside as she scanned the horizon of the water like she was instructed and waited. 

She thought she saw the other woman midway across the water, barreling towards her before she cut to the side and seemed to disappear again thanks to the hour and the lack of her red cape to pinpoint her in the dark.  Cat heard her cut across the water at least twice before she was descending back to the ground beside her as if she had never left in the first place. 

“So you can do loops over the water.”  Cat teased causing Kara to throw her a diverted look.

“Wait for it.”  Kara allowed, coming to stand behind Cat and watching as the otherwise calm water drew back from the shoreline slowly at first before picking up the pace. 

Cat waited, catching the glisten of the shore as it receded before looking back out, waiting for something, anything to happen.   That was she saw it, the first bloom of light beneath the mirror like surface, building in the water in all manner of patterns Kara had apparently drawn upward.  Her brow furrowed as she saw what looked like some kind of blemish on the horizon, as Kara set her hands on Cat's shoulders.

Kara focused on the frozen spire of water she had made sending a small burst of her heat vision into it, feeling Cat thumb into her chest at the surprise of it. Her voice soothing the woman as she apologized.

The water erupted with movement, the melted spire rushing back to the core body of water and sending waves across its surface.  All at once the water came alive with a brilliant blue luminescence rushing towards them fast enough to make Cat gasp as she realized how close they were to the edge and that they were going to be soaked.

No sooner had she thought it, Cat felt weightless, watching the shoreline come alive with that unearthly glow beneath her and blanketing the pair of them in its light. Kara's arms were around her waist, hands holding her opposite hips as the light continued to roll in on the waves Kara had made for them.  Her back was flush against Kara's warmth and the pliant curves of her chest, she wrapped a hand around Kara's forearm to steady her mind even if she knew the woman would never drop her.  

Kara's chest felt tight, her hold secure and her eyes were on anything but the bio-luminescent light show she had provided Cat. She felt the press of Cat's fingers against her skin, nails just barely digging in as she turned.  Kara felt Cat's fingers in her hair, arm reaching behind her head to pull her close before Cat lifted her features, breath warm on Kara's skin before she closed the gap between them. 

Cat twisted harder, forcing Kara to relax her hold enough to help the other woman turn around completely.  Her hands kneaded at Cat's dress, pulling them flush together as she sucked in a deep breath through her nose at the feel of Cat's velvet tongue slipping into her mouth.  Cat's arms wound themselves around her shoulders, pulling her higher up against Kara's body as she turned her head and kissed her impossibly deeper.  

Kara let out a groan, hugging Cat to her body as she drew them farther from the subsiding light in the water until her feet touched the ground with Cat's following reluctantly after.  Kara bent down to Cat's smaller height, breaking their kiss with a faint whimper on Cat's behalf when they separated.  

“Rao bless it.” Kara swore, swallowing hard before she even attempted to open her eyes only to find Cat near panting and staring right back at her.  Kiss touched lips begging to be taken again before Kara had to look heavenward.  “I..”  she cleared her throat as her voice broke, causing Cat's mouth to lift in a unprovoked smile of accomplishment.

“I should get you back.” Kara licked her lips and let out a breath, trying to calm her heart as Cat eased her hands down Kara's shoulders, turning them inward until they rested on the flat of her chest near the base of her throat.  That smile only growing as she felt the thunderous beat of Kara's heart beneath her touch with enough force to make her hands move slightly.  “To.. home.” Kara nodded as if to convince herself of what she was saying.

Cat watched Kara struggle with herself, trying to compose herself, convince herself she was doing the right thing.  If it wasn't so chivalrous and romantic and considerate she'd just grab her up and kiss her into oblivion until they were so lost in each other that they couldn't remember their names, left half dressed and struggling for air in the sand. 

“Okay.” She breathed, fanning her fingers out, thumb still miraculously hooked around Kara's glasses for the second time today alone.  She nodded and closed her eyes, leaning forward until her forehead bumped gently against the base of Kara's throat as she let out a breath to collect herself.  Fingers flexing when she felt Kara's hands slip through her hair with a gentle sense of idolatry. 

Cat pulled in a deep breath, nuzzling that small spot on Kara's chest before pushing back, opening up the woman's glasses and slipping them back in place in her own mirror of veneration for her. 

They walked slowly together, Kara marveling at Cat's hands in her own, feeling their sinew and bone beneath her stronger touch, taking note of the callouses on the ends of her fingers and the supple texture of her skin until the pair of them are caught in the sharp pitch of headlights which dim a moment later. 

Kara eased Cat back into the car, telling Austin where to go after he thanked her for the food her and Cat had Loto bring out to him. She took a deep breath, looking back towards the water and seeing the last of the blue glow dissipate back to a calm black mirror before dropping into the seat and shutting the door.

The ride was silent, or as silent as it was going to be in Kara's instance.  She could hear Cat's heartbeat against her ribs, the scratch of fabric on bare skin as the other woman's left hand clutched her dress into a fist every so often.  She would inevitably shift her position thereafter, causing the leather of the seat to whine or protest.  She was in profile to Kara beset with a halo of National City at night, arm resting on the door again while fingers touched over her mouth, sometimes just tapping other times rubbing back and forth with a slow intent.  Her legs stretched on for days, especially with the rise of her dress hem. Bare feet poised on the balls of her feet like they often did at the office when Cat removed her heels every morning.  

Kara subconsciously licked her bottom lip, rubbing it with the end of her teeth as she continued to side eye Cat, feeling her own chest tighten while her throat ran dry and her heart drummed in her ears.  She tried a deep breath, feeling her ribs constrict instead of expand with the scent that invaded her senses like a drug and had to force her eyes to close so she could look away.  She pulled in another breath, head turned to the opposite side of the city as they drove through it back towards its heart, only to blink and see Cat's reflection in the window looking at her. 

Cat never once actually looked out the window, even if her gaze was turned that way she was watching Kara in reflection, attempting not to look at her.  She felt her throat tighten, swallowing the rising disquiet that had nested itself along her nerves, making her hyper aware and overly sensitive to her immediate surroundings.   Cat couldn't help the need to flex her hand around her dress, it was distracting and kept her fingers from crossing the midline of the back seat and grabbing the other woman.  Without prompt she was already thinking about Kara's mouth, on her lips, across her throat, over her chest and across her bare back until she caught movement.  Kara's eyes were closed, and as she turned to look away completely, Cat chased her, turning her features to look at Kara without restriction. 

Kara's throat tensed when she felt the touch on her leg, sliding mid way along her thigh, wrapping around the muscle there and digging in.  Without looking away from the window she set her hand over Cat's own, squeezing back before the she knocked twice on the window in quick succession, waited then knocked again.  There was another flex from Cat against her leg as she recognized her own signal from far earlier today, which already felt like forever ago, utilized, turning the view of the city about as their driver adjusted course.  

Cat never turned away as she watched the other woman, who seemed nothing like the assistant she knew her to be, nor did she read as Supergirl.  This was something altogether different and yet familiar just the same and a part of Cat secretly prayed it was all just for her consumption.  That this was one more surprise she was being given by Kara that could remain hers and in essence theirs.  

Kara looked down at their hands before the blue of her eyes leveled on Cat from across the back seat without lifting her head.  Cat raised a brow as was customary, head tipping slightly as she tried to read the question being asked of her before she released Kara's leg, turning her hand over and threading her fingers between the other woman's.  She drew Kara's hand up, lips brushing across her knuckles where her breath caught in result before she whispered the first thing that came to mind. 

“Yes.”  

They were back in that underground parking lot before either of them could really wrap their minds around the reality of it all.  For Kara it calmed her nerves slightly, she was still a mess of them but it was easier to consider this all within a neutral space than it was in her own minuscule apartment or Cat's high rise penthouse.  Especially if those nerves got the better of either of them and they stopped, whatever it was they were doing, or thinking of doing. 

“Thank you Austin.”  Cat said confidently, despite the quiet volume of her words dismissing him for the night as she untangled herself from Kara's grip and gathered her belongings from her shoes to her jacket and bag before slipping out of the car on bare feet.  Kara wasn't far behind, getting a knowing smile from the driver before she closed the door.  

“Bout damn time.” He muttered, watching them get into the elevator safely before driving off, fully intending on being back sometime in the morning just in case.


	5. Chapter 5

They were out of the elevator in a flourish, shoes, bag, jackets on the floor as Cat grabbed for Kara's features, sucking in an audible breath through her nose as she slowed them down with a kiss. Kara grabbed for Cat's forearms, sliding down until she grabbed the more solid contours of her waist feeling their combined weight's pitch until Cat emptied a painful groan into her throat as her back impacted with the wall.

Kara immediately broke their kiss, arms slipping between Cat and the solid panel, her voice a rushed whisper. “I’m sorry, are you sure you-”

Cat's answer was another heady kiss, forcing Kara's jaw slack as she tasted the younger woman with a low growl of a sound before she set a hand flat on Kara's chest gently pushing her back until they broke apart again. Her hand trailed down the line of her shirt, grabbing for her waist band and thumbing Kara's belt apart before backing up into the wall again, setting her hands behind her before actually grinning and sliding along it, rounding the corner and disappearing.

Kara stood there, shirt untucked, belt undone, barefoot and panting as Cat rounded the corner. Her belt was off with a whip and a slap of leather against her hip, the hardware of the buckle clattering to the ground as she rounded the corner in a rush only to trip and brace herself on her hands with a soft 'oof' and a bounce. She frowned, looking at the bed barring her way, knowing it wasn't here earlier, she looked around the newest space she occupied, taking in the light rigs and various other elements of a would be photo shoot.

Cat was there, at the opposite side of the bed, still standing as she studied Kara carefully before following her gaze around the dimly lit room.

“This...did?”

Cat smirked and shook her head. “Next month's layout...” She gave Kara a knowing look waiting for it to click to which Kara straightened slightly.

“Anniversary edition, that's right you do the main... main spread.” Kara's words faltered slightly as she realized her words too late.

“Private studio, my choice of center fold.” Cat mused, and Kara straightened even more watching Cat's expression falter in reponse to her own.

“Is, is that why we're-” Kara gestured between them, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

It was Cat's turn to frown as she glanced around before taking in Kara's shift in posture before her eyes widened through the haze of her arousal. “Oh. No. Kara no.” Cat was on the bed without regard to herself, coming over on her knees until she was directly in front of the other woman. Cat felt her heart break at the thought that Kara would think Cat would exploit her that way, or more, wondered who prior to now had.

Kara winced at herself, letting a sigh out as she turned her eyes away. “I'm sorry. I, know- you wouldn't it, I've just built so, I've had to...” Cat's fingers touched her chin, lifting her eyes up again as Cat found them, waiting until their joint gazes were secure in one another.

“I'm sorry.” Cat ushered, scooting a little closer and careful not to jostle the other woman or go so far as to fall off the bed. “For whomever exploited you for their personal gain Kara. But,” her tone shifted, becoming less forgiving but equally compassionate. “I would never do that to you, I will never do that to you. There will no doubt be some kind of fallout, or scandal, or photos taken of us without consent after tonight, unless we stop right now,” Cat almost couldn't believe her own words but they were important for the both of them. “Until you're ready for all that.”

Kara took a deep breath, feeling Cat pull on her hands, setting them on her waist before running her own back up Kara's arms, toying with the open collar of her shirt as Kara pulled her closer. “What about you?” Kara cautioned, running the end of her nose across the bridge of Cat's until their foreheads touched together.

“What about me.” Cat whispered, nudging Kara's forehead as she reached up, running her thumb across Kara's bottom lip. “Worried?” She felt the other woman nod slightly even as her lips parted at Cat's touch. “You've managed my life for over two years Kara and this worries you?”

“I can't be your assistant.” She husked, feeling Cat's other hand fan out across the bare plain of her chest, fingertips touching her throat gingerly.

“Says who?” Cat teased gently, she knew Kara couldn't possibly be in that position at CatCo forever, despite how much she might want her to be and certainly not after tonight. If they continued this it was going to be hell at work, chaos to find a new assistant, to figure out the logistics of where Kara could or couldn't be while still being employed by her. Not to mention being Supergirl on top of all of it. She tipped her chin up, brushing her lips across Kara's own and just took a moment to breathe her in before breaking away again.

“Worth it.” She husked, leaning back just enough to look at Kara without feeling like she was going to fall into the depths of her eyes.

“Do..” Kara started, her eyes still closed as she felt Cat's fingertips whisper across her skin slowly. “You want me, or Supergirl?”

“Are the two so mutally exclusive?” Cat watched Kara carefully, waiting until her eyes opened again as she offered her a ghost of a smile. “I want you, this, all of this you've shown me tonight. And my assistant, and Supergirl, even if it terrifies me.”

Kara searched Cat's features, watching her aura swirl without an ounce of falsehood to her words, feeling her chest expand with a heavy breath. “Okay.” Kara licked her lips, stepping back just enough to see where the catch in Cat's dress was, unhooking the eyelet near her ribs before drawing the zipper down her hip. As the dress loosened Kara fit her fingers inside the small slit, dragging the thin material down towards Cat's knees, revealing the slip beneath and matching under garments.

“What if.” Kara started, helping Cat out of the dress as she stayed on the mattress. “I had an idea,” she unbuttoned her own shirt as Cat's fingers dusted over her ever growing exposed skin. “For your anniversary edition.”

“Go on..” Cat tipped her head, eyes darting back and forth between them in thought as Kara's words fell on her like rain. Pricking her skin into goosebumps and hijacking her curiosity to a level of anxiousness as she was undressed and privy to Kara undressing herself in front of her until she grabbed for the woman when her balance was thrown off.

Kara grabbed the box of a bed frame, pushing it easily until it came flush against the nearby wall. Cat's skin was like silk as it collided with her own, her grip firm as it clung to her muscles and spanned across her back. When they stopped they were close enough to kiss again, sharing each other's air as Kara pushed forward, easing Cat back from the height of her knees and further until she touched the wall. 

“You have the footage from earlier... the sound byte that reporter friend of yours said when they were setting up.” Kara leaned over her, bypassing Cat’s mouth and making for her throat instead. “You can say no, or that it’s a bad idea… or help me.” She flicked at the hollow of Cat’s throat with her tongue causing her to gasp. “Show everyone what the woman behind the most powerful woman in National City outside of Supergirl can do…”

Cat slid the straps of Kara's bra down to her biceps, twisting the straps into her fists before pulling the other woman up, kissing her thoroughly until the two of them could barely breathe. “Pull that canvas over, and turn those two rigs on...” She bit at the curve of Kara's chin as she pushed up for one last point of contact, her heart racing and her mind waving flags at her to stop. She felt the heat of the lights when Kara slipped away, turning enough to lay out along the bed, staring up at the ceiling as she caught the adjustments of the lights Kara made on the walls and heard a small thump of something being placed on a counter.

Was she seriously considering this, her mind laughed and screamed at her and she felt the twist of uncertainty settle in her gut, overriding the thick haze of arousal that had been stirring there for more than half the evening. She barely had time to consider the answer when she felt Kara's hands filter into her hair, pulling gently as she tipped her head backwards and kissed her upside down. Cat reached up, tangling her hands in Kara's impossibly thick hair, hiding behind its veil as she bowed her body up and kissed the woman back.

“There's no going back after this.” Cat let slip between them as Kara trailed kisses across her skin.

“I know.” Kara said confidently, nibbling at Cat's ear lobe. “But I'm so exhausted trying to hide how I feel for you Cat.”

Cat's jaw fell slack, a soft huff of a breath escaping her as she flexed her hands in Kara's hair, her arousal chasing the other demons swirling in her stomach away. “How long?” Kara hummed her question of elaboration, mouth preoccupied with the point just behind Cat's ear. “How long have you..”

“When I saw the fire on the screen in your office.” Cat frowned slightly trying to recall which time that could have been in over two years, her breath catching when Kara sucked on her neck just behind her ear. “My first thought was that I needed to make sure to save you from it if it expanded towards the city.” Kara pulled away, the curtain of her hair swept back as she pivoted around the bed, mouth dusting across Cat's shoulder, across the rising curve of her chest threatening to spill out of her slip and further. “Instead of saving people from it, while trying to convince you I was ordinary.”

Cat couldn't help but groan recalling the memory of when Kara had interviewed with her intermingled with the sinful touch of her mouth as it coated her skin and made her flush with arousal, turning her body in on itself until she felt Kara's hands round over her thighs and pull them to her. She felt the trail of Kara's fingers upward, pushing her slip higher before she felt the hook of them around her garter and panties as they were drug down.

Her body was off the bed and braced on her shoulders with a sharp gasp as Kara's tongue curled its way inside her. Her own hand was over her mouth a moment later, muffling the sounds she was making until she felt Kara's hand grab for her wrist, drawing it away without stopping the ravishment of Cat's body. Their fingers linked again serving as an anchor for Cat as her body responded flagitiously to Kara's crusade.

She felt that coiled haze race through her body, coming to life that some great wildfire as it spread through her nerves, forcing her hips up and locking her muscles up for what felt like an eternity as she used Kara's hand to stay earthbound. The woman's name burned through her throat and emptied into the space they occupied as tight ropes of sensation twisted up from her hips and forced her back onto her shoulders again. Her breath came in pants on the back of faint whimpers as she tried to come back down into herself, just as Kara's tongue pushed deeper and her mouth closed around her, flinging Cat past the point of recovery.

The bed dipped, and the warmth of Kara's body slid away from her, her hand curling along the pristine sheets with the vacancy as her body protested and in the same instant begged for more. The latter of the two arguments spurred Cat up, turning herself onto her side as she tried to chase down the other woman in her ecstasy induced fumbling. She barely registered the sound of the camera and continued to move, coming to sit at the end of the bed when it went off again.

Her eyes caught Kara as she lowered the camera back down to a safer place nearby as Cat found her feet and made her way over to her with purpose. She pushed Kara back, causing her to stumble until she was caught by a canvass covered chair, the back of it thudding into the wall as she was set on two legs. Kara held to the corner of the wall as Cat stalked over to her, a wicked smile curling her lips as she set her foot on the seat cushion, forcing the chair back down on four legs with a thud.

“You're over dressed.” She purred, leaning forward to taste herself on Kara's mouth as she finished what she started earlier, tugging unceremoniously at Kara's pants, leaving them to the other woman's capable hands as she claimed the waistband of Kara's briefs and forced them away in a fit of movement.

Kara felt Cat's hands flatten across her stomach, palming at her muscles there before wrapping around her sides and urging her hips forward as she surrounded Kara's back. Her body tensed as electricity spiraled through it when Cat mapped out all the sinew there with wet, open mouthed kisses and bold swaths of her tongue. With nothing else to hold onto Kara flexed her fingers into the wall, sending drywall and mortar to the floor as Cat's mouth seared up her torso and fit around the cup of her bra, pulling it down and away before devouring the newly exposed skin.

It was Cat's turn to pull on Kara's wrist, guiding her hand into her hair though Kara refused to touch her. Fighting for air, expression lost somewhere between pleasure and reluctance Kara's fingers twitched and she let out a small groan on the edge of uncertainty.

“Hold on Kara.” Cat's voice was a good octave lower than usual, vibrating against her chest as she pulled Kara's hips closer to her with an arm around her waist. “I know you won't hurt me.” She urged, tasting the hollow of Kara's throat as her fingers finally sunk into her hair. She winced at first until Kara corrected herself before she seemed to suck all the air out of the room.

Kara eyes went wide as she saw Cats expression, mouth wet and visage almost apologetic in a completely unapologetic way as delectable waves rolled through her body when Cat's fingers twisted and curled their way inside her. She flexed her fingers in Cat's hair, reaffirming her hold on the back of the other woman's head while the muscle of Cat's forearm and bicep flexed and rolled with her gesticulations.

Kara bit at her bottom lip, glasses askew as she looked down at Cat building pressure and fire between her legs and sending it throughout her body. Her hips dug and rolled from their precarious balance on the end of the chair as Cat pressed deeper and deeper, tongue curling to touch the underside of her lip as the corners of her mouth lifted in the same moment.

“There..” Kara fought for the word pulling in sharp breath that Cat again chased as their mouths crashed together as Kara came undone emptying her cry into Cat's throat.  Cat pushed up to a stand, waiting until Kara's body released her before pulling at the thick fabric around the chair and its occupant not daring to pull her mouth away from the woman until she felt her body start to relax again.

Kara heard the camera click, her body hyper aware of the heavy fabric coating her skin, running her hand along its edges for something to hold onto as her body pressed in on itself, longing for Cat's touch and feeling almost empty without it.

Cat made to take another picture when she caught Kara's expression, the longing in her eyes and the shell shock of their severed connection curling through her limbs. She abandoned the camera a heartbeat after, padding back to Kara in a flourish, nearly throwing herself into the chair and curling herself around the woman's lap without hesitation.

Kara shook as she felt Cat pressing herself flush against her, arms wrapping around her body as she buried her features against the flat of her chest. Her glasses were pulled away, left to the floor as Cat secured her hold in Kara's hair, whispering nurturing words as Kara dug in deeper letting out a shuddering breath trying to calm herself.

“Breathe Kara, I've got you and I'm not letting go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay my goal with 3 days off was to finish ALL outstanding fics.... GDI I tried... I started with this one, knowing I had a clear intention of where I was going.... then this story just turned... I don't know how or why or where but it did... ARG plot bunnies of doom...


	6. The Reveal

Kara stood in the large walk in closet that was her new office, had been her new office for weeks now. After a surprise relocation, demands that she find Cat a replacement assistant and a dictionary of legal paperwork she ended up just signing without reading over she was amazed at the current amount of downtime that she had. Especially given the excitement building around the office with the later the hour got in the day. She ran her hands through her hair, holding it away from her as her stomach did flips and turns and knots that the Blue Angels would be jealous of. Today was the final day, the last day before the launch and the big gala and the release of CatCo's 10th anniversary edition.

Cat had refused to show her anything concerning the photos they had taken of each other over a month ago now. She refused to show her the layouts or any other articles or materials concerning CatCo's issue period. Instead, she had given her a promotion, a new office and her pick of job within the company. After the first two weeks she was still trying to find a decent replacement that didn't run out of the building in tears or end up in her office trying to hide. By the fourth week she had managed to find two people to take her place and they had seemed to work out so far.  
  
There had been a few blunders as it was but with Kara's constant intervention they had seemed to find a groove with one another and Cat that appeared to be working. Only time would tell with those two. As it was she had tried her hand delving into the photographic elements of the tribune and CatCo, having been thusly inspired by more personal endeavors. But had found that it pulled her out of the office too much and while it had served as a great excuse to slip into the role of Supergirl when needed, it just wasn't the same.

If she were being one hundred percent honest with herself, she really missed Cat in her day to day and while the transition was a positive one it was still something the both of them were trying to adjust to. As it was now she was working as a junior editor for the Tribune and as a backup editor for CatCo's online compliment which seemed to be a decent balance of duty and exposure to Cat the more involved she got with it all.

She glanced to the clock once more, taking note she had about thirty minutes before Cat's meeting with everyone on staff concerning the unveiling of the ten year edition and everything that would be expected of them tonight. It was the first time, Kara found, that Cat had such a heavy hand in its overall development and application beyond final layout approvals like usual. Most people chalked it up to it being an anniversary edition, while Kara had a different impression altogether.

They had discussed it enough after work, either out having drinks, catching a late dinner or meeting up at Loto's which they had done twice now. Everything between them on that front was still so fledgling and new and with Kara's newest responsibilities and Cat's overwhelming need to be the first, middle, and last day of the current issue their time spent together had been limited outside of work.

Her phone buzzed from her desk, pulling her out of her thoughts as she reached for it, leaning back into a stretch to read it before finding herself upended and on her back at the context. She quickly righted herself with a turn and upended her chair, grabbing her phone from the floor and rereading the text Cat had just sent her, eyes wide and mind reeling with disbelief.

“Ms. Danvers, I was wondering if perhaps you would be my date tonight to the unveiling?”

Due to Kara's lack of response her phone beeped at her again.

“I just realized I never did return the favor after you took me to dinner and thought I would ask.”

Kara rounded her desk, grabbing her door handle and flinging the thing open, this was something that had to be done in person. She took a half step forward and then swore to high Rao as Cat just seemed to appear, startling only slightly when the pair nearly collided before leaning an arm against the lip of the wall holding the door frame.

“Hello to you too.” Cat allowed, brow raising as she kept her features stoic despite the laughter that reached her eyes. Kara held her phone out, screen facing the other woman but she only received a higher level of brow arc as result.

“So no?” Cat said after another minute, a tiny frown forming on the edge of her mouth.

“No, I yes. Wait.” Kara huffed a breath that moved her hair before she pushed it out of her face. “I would love to go with you as your date.” She backed up stepping to the side so Cat could follow her in before she shut the door, barely catching Cat's amused smirk and clear turn of thought with that little snick of the door securing itself. “Are you sure?” She was up in Cat's space a second later even as the other woman turned and fit herself on the edge of her desk, legs crossing at the ankle as her hands wrapped around the edge.

“I wouldn't have asked otherwise Kara.”

“I know but, what about, I mean there's the board and everything.” Kara pursed her lips together, fingers playing with themselves in front of her. “I mean I know I'm not your assistant anymore.” She said with a hint of sadness before barreling forward. “But, I, I don't want to be any reason why-”

“Do you not want anyone to know yet?” Cat questioned, her amusement lowering to a simmer as she watched Kara fidget. “If you're not ready for any of that, or being attached to me like that yet-”

“No.” Cat seemed taken aback by the vehemence of Kara's tone, hiding away another smile. “No.” She continued. “I'm, I want people to know, I don't care if they take pictures or write articles, or have us as the top of the hour power couple on ET. Trust me when I tell you Cat, I want to shout it from a mountain top, and I can actually do that.”

Cat braced herself on Kara's desk, holding her leg out to stop Kara's slight pacing before beckoning her over with a small motion of her chin. Kara stepped against her a moment later, fitting herself between Cat's knees and setting her hands on the desk near her hips as Cat fingered through her hair until her arms rested on Kara's strong shoulders. “But?”

“You remember how you didn't want to be responsible for keeping me from doing that other job of mine?”

Cat mmhmm at her, toying with the back of Kara's neck through her hair, it was such a rare moment for them, especially at work, even now she was breaking one of her own rules they'd lain out with one another, but like Kara she was starting to get, well, antsy. Coupled with not being able to look up and see the other woman every second of her working day had made Cat bury herself in this month's issue and become even more tyrannical than she usually was.

Until she realized that was how all her other relationships prior seemed to phase themselves out. Clearly she didn't really care enough to pursue those endeavors or change anything about her day to day and eventually she would get a letter, a vase of flowers or some blurb on a talk show to the equivalent of an “it's not you it's me” speech and the fleeting connection would be severed and over with.

Kara was different, she made time for her, or tried, she certainly had despite her efforts towards the anniversary edition knowing even before they started dating how much work it was going to be anyway. She'd gone out after going home, twice. Made excuses to leave her office on the chance of running into Kara, even made her sit out in the bullpen to observe the twins to ensure they were learning everything they should from the best.

“This is kind of the same for me, I mean, I'm not saying I want to give you or this or what it is we're doing-”

“Dating.”

Kara smiled gently, feeling Cats heel against her calf and her fingers whispering across her neck, the smell of her perfume and something beneath it uniquely Cat Grant. “Dating, yes, dating I don't want to give that or you up but I worry about the board, or I don't know legal? HR?” She let out another huff as Cat smirked faintly, just watching the woman fluster about.

“You didn't read anything legal or human resources had you fill out once you got in here did you?”

Kara had been about to continue her little diatribe but pulled up short with Cat's interjection. She pressed herself flat against the desk edge, feeling Cat's thighs press against the outside of her own shaking her head slightly. “No. It was the size of a dictionary and they needed me to sign them right then. I wanted to take them home because I could speed read them but there had to be a witness and it just got to the point of reading the sentence before I had to initial or sign.”

Cat hummed in an amused fashion, leaning forward just enough to whisper in Kara's ear. “Let's just say, I had a feeling you might feel this way, and made sure to cover that super ass of yours.”

Kara swallowed hard at the heat of Cat's voice, turning her features towards the velvety tones, eyes already on Cat's mouth longing to kiss her. “Even if you're breaking your own rules about workplace fraternization with involved employees?”

Cat grinned, leaning in just enough before pushing up from the desk and effectively pushing Kara back as she stood and then brushed past her. “You're late for the meeting.” She allowed, opening the door to Kara's office and slipping out, only to stop sharply, in full run of the elevators and anyone nearby. “And Kara?”

“Y-yes Ms. Grant?” Kara came to the mouth of the office, tablet in hand, thankful she hadn't said Cat.

“I'll pick you up at seven.” Her mouth curled in an almost wicked smile before she turned and made her way towards the meeting room leaving Kara standing there dumbstruck as well as a few other nearby employees.

 

**\-------**

 

Kara took one last look at her reflection in the mirror, turning around backwards to look at herself over her shoulder, taking in the exposed lines of bone and muscle that were much more prominent since the last CatCo event she had dressed up for. Which ironically was her own issue, well Supergirl's issue but still. She pushed up onto the balls of her feet, testing the muscles in her calves and made a face at herself before dropping back down flat footed with a slightly frustrated sigh.

“I look so, bulky Alex. I bought this to surprise her not, worry I'm going to crush her.” She said to the phone which was on speaker, turning back around to look at herself head on. She adjusted the black patent leather belt of her dress, tugging at the top just under her arms and ensuring it hugged her torso without give so it wouldn't fall down.

“Says who? Not my fault you wanted to train more in the event your powers went out again. You're not bulky, I promise. Besides it's not like we knew that training you under kryptonite lights would produce those kinds of results so quickly.”

“Not helping.” Kara said, smoothing the matte tone skirt of her dress down and making sure the split sat just right in the center. The length of the dress went past her knees but the cut allowed it to open just shy of the length of her suit skirt.

“Your problem is you never see anything but your legs half the time Kara, hiding under layers and sweaters and button ups and whatnot. Of course you look different to yourself. Do you just stand in front of the mirror naked on a regular basis.”

“No.”

“Well then, you just haven't noticed the results cause you're either in your suit or in work clothes.”

Kara shifted her mouth slightly, eventually tucking in her bottom lip before pulling an arm up and purposefully flexing, watching the muscle beneath tighten and fill out in near perfect contour. She saw the round of her shoulder follow suit and with a hint of a smile turned her wrist down and watched the long muscles of her forearm cord up.

“I could flatten a steel pipe…” She said absently causing Alex to chuckle.

“You could do that before little sis. I promise you, you’re beautiful and besides when you relax it’s all about contour and shape, it’s very deceiving but I purposefully trained your that way. Same way I trained myself, functioning muscle, not showcase and brawn. You’re not bulky, you’ve just got more muscle tone than you realized before now and it shows that’s all. ”

Kara turned again, flexing her shoulders forward before hearing the beep of an incoming call. “Hold on a second.” She hit answer and then went over to grab her shoes.

“I had nearly expected you to be waiting on the curb like last time.” Cat's voice flowed through her entire apartment and she nearly tripped at the sound of it.

“You're here.”

“Oh yes, I'm here.” Cat purred. “Are you ready or am I coming up?” Kara stood straight as an arrow at the thought, before moving to the window and leaning out of it, seeing the limo parked against the curb.

“Kara...”

“You're in a limo.” No sooner had she said it she wished she hadn't, seeing the sunroof retract. She could easily make out the woman inside, suddenly looking up at her from four floors down.

“Yes. Are you taking the stairs or are you just going to float down from there?”

Kara immediately leaned back into her apartment, scrambling to get her things, if Cat came up, one, she'd never live down the mess she'd be inviting her to, and two they might never actually make it to the Seraphim Hotel for the unveiling.

“I'm, I'll be right down.” She nearly poked her eyes out with her glasses as she tried to get them on, bouncing her purse in her palm to keep it from slapping onto the floor as she hung up and switched back over to Alex. “Hey, sorry, ride's here.”

“Have fun and remember cat's have claws, be thankful she can't leave marks.”

“Oh my god I never should have told you! Bye Alex!” She hung up the phone and threw it in her purse, hooking her feet into her heels, standing on them carefully to get used to their height before applying the slightest bit of effort so that she was very nearly floating. Easiest way to manage that. She checked her make up one last time, hearing a honk and she was out the door in a burst of super speed.

Austin was there to greet her, giving her a warm smile and complimenting her as he opened the door to allow Kara inside the impossibly long car. Kara ducked enough to step inside, tucking herself into the seat before turning to Cat and coming up short on words. Cat was the picture of some greek goddess, or at least trying to embody one and greatly succeeding. Her neck and shoulders were bare, hair in waves and pinned up loosely, the dress was held by a simple collar of a thing where the material gathered at the base of her neck and flowed like the blue reflection of the water from their first date.

Cat smirked at her. “Well look at you.” She said softly, before leaning close enough that her nose brushed Kara's cheek and made her entire chest flush red. Cat reached around to the other side of her and pulled an errant strand back and re-affixed it into the clasp that was holding Kara's hair back from her face while still leaving it down. “It amazes me how well you clean up compared to your wardrobe at work.” Cat murmured, nudging Kara's ear with her nose causing her to gasp softly.

“Sort of how you manage to look so relaxed in that dress despite how you were at work earlier.” Kara lamely supplied, feeling the blush at her neck thicken when Cat teased the shell of her ear with her lips.

“I wore this for you.” Cat allowed, enunciating her words purposefully as she rounded Kara's ear down towards her throat. “It reminded me-

“Of the water on our first date.” Kara finished, turning her features to catch Cat's eye, heart thundering in her chest and hands flexing against the leather of the seat as Cat just smiled knowingly at her. She leaned just a breath closer, just barely touching her lips to Kara's in a fleeting whisper of a kiss that Kara chased as she leaned back and away with deep purr of a chuckle in result.

“We're not going to make it through tonight are we.”

“Not if you're lucky.” Cat supplied without hesitation, touching the corner of her mouth before just drinking Kara in like a finely aged scotch.

Kara swallowed her nerves and set back into the seat perpendicular to Cat, thankful for the small separation of space to allow her to get her bearings. “This is going to be crazy isn't it?”

Cat's expression fell slightly, her amusement veiled in concern. “Kara, I'm serious, if you're not ready for any of this...”

“No, no, like I said, I don't want to hide anymore, well not hide, but I have enough secrets as it is.” She took a deep breath, only just now feeling the flush of her skin starting to die down. “I don't want you to be one of them. I see other people in the office in other departments and other places who are together and I'm not saying I want to hold your hand walking across the top floor or anything but I'm, I'm proud of us, of this, of our dating thing and I want people to know I'm not available without making a pass at me first and I know we're both adults and can work accordingly in the same building and maintain a professional relationship with one another and a personal one at the same time.”

Cat studied Kara as she rambled, feeling her chest swell with pride and something else as she worked through the little nuances of their current situation in reflection to those around her at work. She felt the pang of jealously when Kara mentioned other people thinking she was available and in turn felt the spike of her own sense of satisfaction at being able to say Kara was with her. That Cat herself was just as unavailable because of that woman in the closet office by the elevators. She pulled in a deep breath when she was sure Kara was done, seeing the start of the line of cars as they rounded another corner, knowing they still had some time still.

“Do you remember what I said to you in the office earlier.”

“About my ass?” She replied with a hint of delectation despite the seriousness that had settled over her.

“A fine one that it is, yes. Tonight is going to change a lot of things for you and for me. This, us.” She reached over and took Kara's hands, making sure the other woman looked at her. “This is going to be 'official' now, you're going to be on par with your own alter ego for a bit, unless you want me to silence it. You say one word Kara and I promise you no one will print word or picture one of us without the full wrath of my legal council coming down on them. I need you to be alright, with all of it, because with me comes so much... baggage. Good and bad, more bad in some instances than good, which is why I've been divorced three times, okay? And I know I keep telling you this is going to be different and very involved for you, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't terrified myself about it all. I'm twice your age as far as anyone is concerned even though technically yes I know it's not true. But I'm running a multimedia empire, with two sons and a history longer than your entire journey here. That is a lot to contend with. Not to mention I'm selfish and mean and at times very jaded with the world and I will no doubt take it out on you sometimes because it'd be easy.”

Cat looked past her to the windows, seeing the flashbulbs already going off with the arrivals in front of them. “But I also know in the time you've been around me, even before we started dating, you made me a better person. You changed me and I'm not easy to change, just ask Carter.” She felt Kara squeeze her hands, causing Cat to look back at Kara whose eyes were glassy. “I want to do this with you, I've bet so much on it already and trust me when I say everything is taken care of with work no matter what okay?”

Kara took in a deep breath, nodding a few times over before letting out a breath through her mouth to steady herself as Cat reached up to touch the side of her face. “You said you didn't want to hide, you wanted everyone to see us. So do I, and I want them to see you how I see you just like how I know you want so much for people to see what it is you see in me that even I can't wrap my head around. That is what is going to happen tonight.”

Cat barely had time to react when Kara surged forward, fitting her lips against Cat's in a kiss she had intended to start out gentle and loving until Cat opened up to her with a sharp intake of breath. Cat's hand wrapped around her jaw to tug her closer as she kissed her back with a sense of abandonment that made Kara wish she had just invited Cat up to her apartment earlier.

There were flashes to their left, camera's pressed against the window trying to see through the dark tint to no avail, when Cat pulled back breathing heavy, leaving Kara to adjust her glasses and fix her hair she was thankful she had put in the reflective tint on the company limo over a month ago for this very reason. She wasn't about to give those vultures and paparazzi heathens an ounce of Kara or their relationship that they weren't mutually agreed upon sharing.

“C'mere.” Cat said softly, reaching over to take Kara's lipstick out of her fingers, using her thumb to correct the smudge of her own color she had left before reapplying the dark red shade. Instead of blotting she leaned forward again, pressing her lips to Kara's before expertly blending the two colors now staining her own lips into perfection.

“That's going to drive me crazy all night.” Kara supplied, adjusting her dress as the limo was put into park.

Cat grinned, sliding over to allow Kara out first once Austin made it around. “Not unlike that cut in your dress that I'm sure you thought I hadn't noticed until now.”

Kara hmm'd in amusement, “I wore it just for you.” She lobbed Cat's words back to her just as the seal of the door broke. She winked at Cat before graciously slipping out of the limo, turning, just as she had from their first date, to offer her hand for the other woman to take.

It was like fireworks going off the second Cat hit the red carpet, shouts and calls, flashbulbs and screams for their attention followed them every inch until they to got to the step and repeat featuring the magazine's modified anniversary logo and their sponsors for the night. They paused accordingly for photos, as did everyone that had been invited from celebrities to employees, it was a thing Cat always made sure to include. She also made sure to keep Kara close to her, hands linked at first until such time came for small interviews and soundbites, where Kara's hand found its usual place at the small of Cat's back.

Never once did Cat shy away from who she was, confirming to everyone who asked that Kara was indeed her date in the same sentence that she was wearing vintage Valentino. She also followed up with every single person who asked, that before they finalized their print she had right to review, that she knew their bosses, their publishers, their mothers. That they had been invited here exclusively by Cat herself and Kara eventually seemed to relax enough to answer her own questions as they progressed until she was just as at ease with informing anyone who asked that Cat was her date and she was looking forward to seeing the issue revealed. How great it was for this particular edition and that no one worked harder than the woman on her arm.

Once they were inside the environment seemed to calm, the whirlwind of questions and photos and everything else seemed to slip away as the quiet hum of the string quartet Cat hired filled the space with calming notes and settled around them. Cat snagged two flutes of champagne, knowing it wouldn't do anything to Kara but told her it would relax her just the same as they made their rounds and eventually made it to a secluded area behind the stage set up.

Kara downed half her champagne in one swallow as Cat snuck another kiss much to the other woman's bemusement before taking a sip of her own, who knew Cat could be so tactile when allowed to be. Kara let out another puff of a breath before relaxing her shoulders, keeping her glass in front of her, Cat near her hip and gaze circling the room from the hidden vantage they claimed.

“You look like you're on guard.” Cat supplied, as lights began to dim and attention was being drawn in their direction, or more the stage as three veiled boards were set up behind the mic stand.

“I am.” Kara said honestly, finishing her drink before looking to Cat, her smile slight. “Can't help it, I'm used to watching out for you.”

Cat hummed, filing that away for later as she took another sip of her drink letting out a small sigh. “The twins are looking for me. I can see them scrambling about.”

Kara smirked. “Yes well, you did want to reveal the magazine's main article right up front and then continue the party. It's nearly nine.”

Cat finished off her champagne thereafter, smoothing the folds of her dress and nudging Kara gently to check her over, only to lose her to the open back of the article that revealed so much more than Kara would have thought Cat comfortable. Unable to help herself she reached up, whispering her fingertips across the lower dip of Cat's spine until the woman pulled herself away with a turn.

“I'll take that as a yes then.”

“H-what?”

Cat rolled her eyes halfheartedly. “I asked if everything was lined up.”

“Oh, sor-yes, yes it is.”

Cat let her smirk show, handing Kara her empty glass just as the twins made their way behind stage having spotted the pair of them. “I don't plan on staying long, so stay close.” She allowed before being swept up in every manner of recon the two assistants could muster before the quartet played the cue music for Cat to come on stage. Kara mouthed to her that she'd be waiting before slipping out behind the stage, feeling eyes on her only to push the notion aside, finding a space to occupy as Cat took the stage a few moments after to a herald of applause and conservative cheers.

“Good evening. Thank you all for coming and especially all of you who worked on this issue. It has been a labor of love and importance not only for CatCo but for me personally as well.”

Kara set their glasses aside as Cat continued, making sure to point out contributors and sponsors, some of which helped aid in the party she was providing them all. It was a standard speech, with a few modifications to suit the occasion, that was until Kara herself was pointed out as a co-contributor to the lead article. How she had managed to show Cat something about being vulnerable, and how sometimes, even if it was only once every ten years or so, the people that worked for her, devoted their time and effort and parts of their daily lives to CatCo needed to see that vulnerability. To remind them that yes, despite what they may think, or what they're told, she is indeed as human as they are, while still being their boss.

She leveled her gaze on Kara for the last part just as she stepped back, grabbing the joint edges of the veil covering the showcase boards and in a flourish that was all Cat Grant pulled them away. The flashbulb fireworks were back, coupled with the cacophony of reactions across the entire spectrum from near stendhal syndrome to outrage all with Cat front and center, poised and polished. Kara for her part was locked in place, not only because of the other woman's gaze pinning her there but the pictures she was faced with. There was the first one she had snapped of Cat, disheveled and sweaty and back lit and larger than life, opposite the one Cat had taken of her waylaid and wrapped in a canvas. Then there was the one of Cat in nothing but a slip, shoved back against that brick wall with the headline “Cat Grant Exposed: By The Woman Behind the Most Powerful Woman In National City Since Supergirl.”

  


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Kara for her part was locked in place, not only because of the other woman's gaze pinning her there but the pictures she was faced with. There was the first one she had snapped of Cat, disheveled and sweaty and back lit and larger than life, opposite the one Cat had taken of her waylaid and wrapped in a canvas.

Then there was the one of Cat in nothing but a slip, shoved back against that one wall with the headline “Cat Grant Exposed: By The Woman Behind the Most Powerful Woman In National City Since Supergirl.”

Kara swallowed hard, feeling her chest tighten as her eyes flew back to Cat who mouthed asking if she was okay and for her merit Kara actually nodded. Cat winked before gesturing she come closer, causing Kara to bite her lip before Cat mouthed that it was okay. As she made a single step she could hear the first shout, not of disdain or unfair treatment, but one of encouragement. She heard James shout from somewhere near the back for her to get up there, while others followed suit, making a short path for her to make her way until was up on that stage beside Cat, sending flashbulbs off across the room all over again and another round of applause.

“I can not believe you printed those.” Kara supplied behind a smile, causing Cat's expression to falter slightly.

“I wanted to surprise you. I don't think anyone's taken a better picture of me, certainly not with that kind of method to get it.”

Kara swallowed again, hoping her flush wasn't too visible. “No, I meant that big, it means I don't have to ask you to get me a copy, I'm keeping those.”

Cat actually laughed before squeezing Kara's hand and stepping back to the mic. “Now that that's all out of the way, in the spirit of being more human, the room next door will provide food for the rest of the evening and the bars service is available until two am. Thank you all for a hard, trying and interesting ten years which seemed compacted into this past six weeks, I look forward to ten more. Enjoy yourselves, behave yourselves, you're still my guests or employees here and remember I expect everyone to be on time Monday morning.”

Cat slid back over to Kara, threading her hand with the other woman's and pulling her along gently down the stairs and continuing onward through the small bout of applause and the quartet coming back to life only to come up short when Kara tugged on her gently enough to give her pause.

“Where-?”

“Told you, not staying, I have a date with someone.”

“I thought that was here!” Kara allowed as they started to move again, slipping past the doors they had only spent about an hour or two maximum behind into another gauntlet of press.

“What, set within this calculated artificiality? Not for my girl.” Cat husked, glancing one way down a sidewalk as the paparazzi followed then the other seeing Austin who was quick to clear a path for the two. “C'mon.”

 

**\-------**

 

Monday morning Kara woke to the sun’s rays hitting her naked body, drawing a deep breath she pulled her arms over her head, stretching out with a small groan as a decadent soreness raced through her frame. That was until a small shout pulled her out of her reverie, in a blink she had flipped and was now holding a very naked and very awake Cat Grant a foot from the mattress.

The other woman blinked, her heart racing and her hands clinging to Kara’s shoulders as she was held aloft.

“Are you alright?” Kara started, only for Cat to finish.  
“I didn’t know you slept in mid-air.”

“I usually sleep alone.” Kara amended, starting to ease Cat onto the mattress only to have the woman shake her head. Lifting a brow Kara shifted her hold, holding Cat’s head, arm running down and across her shoulders as her other arm wrapped around her waist to support her body. Cat hooked a foot around one of Kara’s legs, a look of absolute contentment cresting over her features.

“Another surprise...” Cat teased, nuzzling Kara’s features with her own whereas one of her hands snuck down between them, the tips teasing through Kara’s folds and nearly causing them both to drop. “Aw baby.” She mused, making lazy shapes in the growing wetness. “Can’t keep us up?”

Kara actually growled at her, tightening her hold as she bent her head down and fastened her mouth on Cat’s collar bone, sucking hard there and pulling a mark to the surface despite the other woman’s protests. Another heady laugh rose up to greet her, followed by the pull of her hair in Cat’s free hand.

“We’re going to be late Ms. Zor-El.” She drew the other woman’s name in her wetness as she said it, forcing Kara’s mouth away from her skin as a breathless series of words in some other language were fed against Cat’s heart.

“What will people say, after what I expected from them.” She teased again, sliding her fingers deep inside the other woman who trembled to keep them afloat.

Kara was panting, trying to remember how to fly, to compensate for Cat’s frame not to mention the fire that erupted in her stomach as Cat claimed her territory all over again. She hooked a leg around the woman’s waist, raising them higher and higher with each of Cat’s thrusts before spinning them around in mid-air.

“Pleasantly” she swore in Kryptonese as Cat’s thumb rolled across her already aching bundle of nerves, “surprised.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BOOM DONE.... hopefully... lol All photo manips can be found on my [ tumblr ](http://shadhavar1126.tumblr.com/)


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